Nonstop flight route between Shemya, Alaska, United States and Oviedo, Asturias, Spain:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States and Asturias Airport (OVD), Oviedo, Asturias, Spain would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,785 miles (or 9,310 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Eareckson Air Station and Asturias Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Eareckson Air Station and Asturias Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):

• The closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
• On 27 January 1992 the 5073rd Air Base Group located at Shemya AFB was re-designated as the Pacific Air Forces Eleventh Air Force 673d Air Base Group.
• Because of Eareckson Air Station's relatively low elevation of 97 feet, planes can take off or land at Eareckson Air Station at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• Shemya also continued to support the Great Circle Route for MATS and later Military Airlift Command transports between Japan and Elmendorf AFB.
• On 28 May 1943, a small detachment of Alaskan Scouts began reconnaissance of Shemya, a small, flat, uninhabited island 35 miles to the east of Attu.
• The furthest airport from Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,668 miles (17,168 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
• By the end of 1944, several hundred American airmen had been interned by the Russians after their crippled aircraft landed on Petropavlovsk on the Kamchatka Peninsula.
• In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and "  ".
• The mission of Eleventh Air Force was to take advantage of the new airfields on Shemya and Attu, and carry out offensive operations against the enemy forces in the Kuriles.
• The 404th Bombardment Squadron flew B-24 Liberator heavy bombers along with one Beechcraft AT-7, which was used for navigator training.
• With the successful completion of the Aleutian Campaign in August 1943, Eleventh Air Force came within striking distance of the Japanese Kurile Islands, the northernmost being 750 miles to the south-southwest of Shemya.
• Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Asturias Airport (OVD):

• Because of Asturias Airport's relatively low elevation of 226 feet, planes can take off or land at Asturias Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• The closest airport to Asturias Airport (OVD) is León Airport (LEN), which is located 70 miles (113 kilometers) SSE of OVD.
• Asturias Airport (OVD) currently has only 1 runway.
• The furthest airport from Asturias Airport (OVD) is Christchurch International Airport (CHC), which is nearly antipodal to Asturias Airport (meaning Asturias Airport is almost on the exact opposite side of the Earth from Christchurch International Airport), and is located 12,365 miles (19,899 kilometers) away in Christchurch, New Zealand.
• In addition to being known as "Asturias Airport", another name for OVD is "Aeropuerto de Asturias".
• The airport first opened on 11 June 1968.
• Asturias Airport, is the only international airport of Asturias, Spain, in Castrillón.